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It's Fun to Play the Piano ... Please Pass It On!

Greetings all, new to the forum. My apologies for the long first post, it includes a brief introduction and a question to throw out to the community for their suggestions/opinions.

I am very fortunate to now be in a position to purchase a beautiful grand piano, and am having difficulties deciding on what to do/which to purchase, a lovely first world problem to have.

My background is just short of completing ARCT, however, that was many years ago and have played only sporadically since then. So, my ear and mind know what should be happening but my hands and fingers are unable to accommodate. I plan on re-immersing myself and hopefully bringing myself up to what I used to be, or god willing even better.

I also have a young son whom I hope will learn to love playing as well.

I have been around to a few shops, and seen/heard/played many incredible pianos. I have tried to keep as open a mind as possible. My playing repertoire will be varied, classical/jazz primarily, pop rarely.

The ones I have heard and am considering are listed below (I will explain the large range afterwards)These are the main ones that are available within a reasonable distance in my area, and so hopefully I can make a decision based out of these options. The prices I have listed are deliberately vague and not entirely accurate, just providing a range for illustrative purposes.

Used Yahama C or G3/5-The most affordable option, a few available. ~12-20kRestored Steinway A/O- A local rebuilder with an excellent reputation, both are 1920s era ~ 25-30k Shigeru Kawai SK2 ~50kMason Hamlin A or B, New ~60/50kSchimmel C189 or K175, New ~50-60kBluthner Model 6 through a connection, a few years old ~80kBosendorfer 170 ~90k

As you can see, the tone/sound and prices of all of these pianos runs the gamut. I wish I could have them all in the same room to play back to back! I will admit that my favourite was the Bluthner. The Yamaha were the lowest on my list, but nothing to sneeze at.

So on to my dilemma regarding decisions/price- Given that I am just starting to get back into it, and my son may take one look at it and refuse to ever touch the thing, the "smart" thing would seem to be to buy the used Yamaha or restored Steinway with the intent on giving myself a "trial period" of a few years to see if I really do invest the time/energy into getting back into, and then if so upgrade to the Bluthner. I suspect the used Steinway given the name recognition etc etc would be the easiest/hold its value the most in regards to reselling.

Option 2- go the middle ground and buy the Schimmel/Mason/Shigeru. Given that they are new (and almost impossible to find used around here), selling these pianos to upgrade to the Bluthner I would expect to be a fairly expensive proposition.

Option 3- Shout YOLO, go balls to the wall and buy the Bluthner, and love it forever, or I lose interest and have a very expensive place to rest my beer on while my son plays the drums.

So pianoworld-what say you? This is obviously a decision only I can make, but I welcome the thoughts (and flames) of this wise community.

The Bose 170 is the best piano listed (IMHO) and if new, ~90K is a very reasonable asking price.

Let us know what you what you expereince.

And Welcome! to the forum.

Enjoy.

"Imagine it in all its primatic colorings, its counterpart in our souls - our souls that are great pianos whose strings, of honey and of steel, the divisions of the rainbow set twanging, loosing on the air great novels of adventure!" - William Carlos Williams

Well i'll just get to the point that all of these types of threads inevitably come to: Nothing anyone here says really matters in your ultimate decision. All that matters is that you find a piano that resonates with you the individual. It's very personal in that way, and quite often things like reviews and the opinions of others only obscures this process by deemphasizing the importance of your own opinions and impressions. Anyone saying 'such and such is the best of the lot' is completely irrelevant here -- especially since no one commenting here has even played the individual instruments you're considering. If you're thinking about resale then go with Yamaha or Steinway--end of discussion. But in this current market i wouldn't count on any quick sale of any piano if you want to get a price close to what you paid. I hope you find a piano you love, and i hope you keep it and take good care of it and play it for the rest of your life. Cheers

Not knowing where you are located, if I assume you are in the US and the quoted prices are USD then the Bluthner price is definitely too high: in my area (NYC) you can get a new model 6 for mid $70k.

If you want a handcrafted piano from a top manufacturer and can afford it then go for it. However it is often overlooked that these top pianos on average are harder to play. A bit like driving a race car, any small mistake will send you off the track.

I have a Bluthner at home which I absolutely love and when I feel in control it is nothing short of extraordinary. But on some days nothing is right and it is more the piano that controls me rather than the other way around. My teacher has a Kawai RX2 and whenever I play it I like it all the time. In other words as much as I am glad to have a race car I sometimes wish I had a comfy Lexus for the days I want to leave it in the garage.

This is also dependent on one's individual capacity, my teacher makes my piano sound awesome all the time.

The thing to do is spend time before you spend money. Take six months to a year watching the market and trying pianos. Once in a while a great bargain comes along, and you can get a fine piano for less than half the normal market price. The longer you spend looking, the more likely you are to be the one who gets there first.